She shook her head.
“You going away?” Virgil said.
She nodded.
“With who?” Virgil said.
Laurel pointed at Pony.
“You can say his name,” Virgil said.
Laurel stared at Virgil.
“You can,” Virgil said.
She stared some more. Virgil leaned forward and whispered in her ear. She nodded. He whispered again. She shook her head. He whispered again. She was motionless. Then she looked at Pony. And at me and Allie, and obliquely at Chauncey Teagarden. She looked back at Virgil and then at Pony again.
“Pony,” she whispered.
I saw Allie’s eyes widen. Her mouth opened. But something stopped her before she spoke.
“You want that, Pony?” Virgil said.
Pony was turned sideways in his saddle. His right foot was in the stirrup, and his left knee hooked over the saddle. He was rolling a cigarette.
“Si,” Pony said, and lit the cigarette.
“Got some money left from Brimstone,” Virgil said. “I’ll get you some.”
Pony shook his head.
“Good way to start, Jefe,” he said. “Each other, nothing else.”
Virgil nodded.
“Buy her a horse,” he said.
Pony smiled.
“I get her horse, Jefe.”
Virgil nodded slowly.
“Kinda what I was afraid of,” he said.
Pony looked at me and put out his hand.
“Everett,” he said.
“Pony.”
He looked at Teagarden.
“Gracias,” he said.
Teagarden shook his hand.
“On down the road,” he said.
Pony nodded. He looked at Allie.
“Senorita,” he said.
She was holding her apron up to her face.
Virgil stood in front of Laurel with his hands at his sides.
“Wherever you go. Whatever happens. You got some people here who love you.”
She nodded. Then put her arms around Virgil and buried her face in his neck and cried. He put his arms around her and stood expressionless, holding her comfortably until she was through.
She stepped away from him and looked at Pony.
“Chiquita,” he said, and put out his hand.
She swung up behind him. He turned the horse and kicked him into a trot and they left. All of us watched as they rode off. Allie sniffled loudly.
“Nice ceremony,” Teagarden said.
49
EMMA SCARLET wore a red wig for business, but since we were more friends than anything else, and since this morning we had finished our business already, she left the wig on its holder while we drank coffee in her room.
“So, the girl ran off with the half-breed,” Emma said.
“Laurel,” I said. “With Pony Flores.”
“Love,” Emma said.
“I guess.”
We drank some coffee.
“I think Allie was a little upset,” I said.
“You do,” Emma said.
“Think she was planning on some fine eastern gentleman,” I said.
“For crissake, Everett, Laurel didn’t even talk.”
“’Cept to Virgil,” I said. “And ’fore she left she said Pony’s name out loud.”
“Golly,” Emma said.
“She might have been losing her baby, but she’d only had a baby for a couple years.”
“And maybe she didn’t mind,” Emma said.
“No?” I said.
“Maybe she didn’t like the competition,” Emma said.
“Competition with who?” I said.
“Laurel,” Emma said.
“For?”
“Virgil,” Emma said.
“Virgil wouldn’t lay a hand on Laurel,” I said.
“Don’t matter what Virgil would do,” Emma said. “It’s what Allie fears that matters.”
“You think Allie was afraid Virgil would run off with Laurel?” I said.
“’Course she was,” Emma said.
“I don’t see that,” I said. “I known them since they been together. Virgil never run off on her.”
“She ever run out on him?” Emma said.
“She did,” I said.
Emma was still naked from our time of business, and as she talked she leaned back and looked at her extended leg.
“Where’d she end up?”
“Pig wallow in Placido,” I said. “On the Rio Grande.”
“How’d she get out of there?”
“Me and Virgil found her, took her out,” I said.
“And if you hadn’t?”
“She’d a died,” I said.
“So, he owes her leavin’,” Emma said.
“More than one,” I said.
“And if it weren’t for him she’d be fucking her life away in some dump down by Mexico.”
“So, she’d be worried about anybody,” I said.
“Especially a young girl starting to come of age that speaks only to Virgil?”
I nodded and drank some coffee.
“Hadn’t thought of it that way,” I said.
“’Course you hadn’t,” Emma said. “She’s a woman.” She waved her naked leg around. “You only think of her this way.”
“You don’t seem to mind,” I said.
She shrugged and pointed her toes.
“Not with you,” she said.
